Pretzel Turtles

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the pecan halves in a single layer on a baking sheet and put in the oven for 5 to 6 minutes, shaking the pan once halfway through, until they're lightly toasted. Remove them after they're toasted and put them on a plate to cool. Line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Arrange the pretzels neatly on the pan, then top each pretzel with an unwrapped caramel. Place the pan into the oven for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the caramels are softened (but definitely not melting.) Remove the pan from the oven. Gently press a pecan half onto each caramel, just enough for the caramel to fill the pretzel. Set them aside to cool completely. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate. When the pretzel/caramels are cooled, remove them from the baking sheet. Spoon small dollops (1 1/2 teaspoon helpings) of chocolate all over the baking mat, then lightly drop each pretzel onto the middle of each dollop, making sure they're centered. Allow them to cool completely before serving (you can hasten this along in the fridge.) Variation: Spoon a little melted chocolate all over the tops of the turtles to cover the whole thing in chocolate.